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Cimon

Cimon (c. 510 – 450 BC) was an Athenian strategos and statesman who rose to prominence as a military leader in the aftermath of the Persian Wars, commanding Athenian forces in key campaigns that secured Greek dominance in the Aegean Sea.^[1] Born to Miltiades, the victor of Marathon, and Hegesipyle, a Thracian princess daughter of King Olorus, Cimon inherited his father's aristocratic lineage from the deme of Laciadae and early displayed valor at the Battle of Salamis in 480 BC, where his actions enhanced his reputation among Athenians.^[2]^[3] Following the establishment of the Delian League under Athenian leadership, Cimon directed successful operations against Persian remnants, capturing Eion around 476 BC, expelling Dolopians from Scyros in 475 BC—where he reputedly recovered Theseus' bones—and achieving a decisive double victory at the Eurymedon River in 466 BC, destroying a Persian fleet of over 200 ships and routing their army, which compelled Persia to restrict its naval presence in Greek waters.^[3]^[2] Politically, he championed conservative values, fostering alliances with Sparta—earning the label philolaconian—and resisting the democratic reforms of Ephialtes and Pericles, including opposition to curtailing the Areopagus council's powers; his pro-Spartan stance, exemplified by aiding Sparta against a helot revolt, alienated radical democrats and culminated in his ostracism for ten years in 461 BC.^[3] Recalled amid escalating tensions with Sparta around 451 BC, Cimon led a final expedition to Cyprus against Persian forces but died of disease or wounds during the siege of Citium.^[3]^[2] Known for personal generosity, such as sharing his estates' produce with citizens, and a straightforward character unrefined by formal education, Cimon's career embodied the tension between Athenian imperialism and oligarchic sympathies in the mid-fifth century BC.^[3]

Early Life and Rise

Family and Upbringing

Cimon was born c. 510 BC to Miltiades, the Athenian general celebrated for commanding the center at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC, and Hegesipyle, a Thracian noblewoman and daughter of King Olorus of the Odrysian tribe.^[2]^[4] This mixed Athenian-Thracian lineage underscored his elite status within Athens' aristocracy, as Miltiades descended from the Philaid clan, tracing back to the legendary king Ajax and holding tyrannical claims in the Thracian Chersonese, while Hegesipyle's royal heritage provided connections to Odrysian wealth and influence.^[2] Miltiades' failed expedition against Paros in 489 BC, ostensibly to punish the island for medizing during the Persian Wars but criticized as personal vengeance, resulted in his trial for deception before the Athenian demos, imprisonment, and death from gangrene shortly thereafter, leaving Cimon, then in his early twenties, to navigate the consequences of his father's 50-talent fine imposed by the court.^[5] This event marked a pivotal early trial for Cimon, exposing him to the volatility of Athenian popular justice and the burdens of familial legacy, as the unpaid penalty threatened the family's estates until resolved.^[6] Cimon married Isodice, daughter of Euryptolemus and granddaughter of Megacles from the prominent Alcmaeonid clan, forging ties to one of Athens' most influential eugeneis families despite their historical curse and rivalries.^[7] Their union produced several children, including twin sons Lacedaemonius and Oulios (or Eleus), names evoking Dorian affiliations that reflected Cimon's later philolaconian inclinations, as well as others such as Thessalus; Plutarch notes Cimon's deep attachment to Isodice amid his otherwise reputed indulgences.^[8] This family structure reinforced his position among Athens' eupatridai, embedding him in networks of aristocratic intermarriage that prioritized lineage, piety, and martial virtue over emerging democratic egalitarianism.^[7]

Inheritance and Initial Military Role

Following the death of his father Miltiades in 489 BC from complications of a thigh wound sustained during his failed expedition against Paros, Cimon, then in his early twenties, inherited the family estates and liabilities, including the unpaid fine of 50 talents levied by the Athenian court for Miltiades' alleged deceit in securing expedition funds.^[3] Despite limited personal resources, Cimon fulfilled the obligation, reportedly by mortgaging family properties or securing loans from allies, an action that preserved the family's political standing and underscored his fiscal prudence amid Athens' post-Marathon recovery. This resolution averted further confiscations and positioned Cimon to enter public life unencumbered by paternal disgrace. Cimon's initial military involvement aligned with Athens' defense against the ongoing Persian threat, with a possible but unconfirmed role as a hoplite at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC under Miltiades' command, given his age and family ties. His prowess emerged decisively at the Battle of Salamis in 480 BC, where he captained an Athenian trireme adjacent to the Corinthian vessel under Adeimantus and contributed to the decisive Greek naval victory by maintaining formation and engaging Persian ships effectively.^[3] This performance, amid the chaotic straits engagement, earned him recognition as an emerging naval leader, leveraging Athens' expanded fleet built under Themistocles. By 478 BC, following the Persian withdrawal, Cimon, elected strategos, collaborated with Aristides in negotiating the Delian League's formation, persuading Ionian allies to shift anti-Persian command from Spartan Pausanias to Athenian oversight and assessing initial tribute contributions to fund Aegean patrols.^[3] This strategic alignment initiated confederate expulsion of Persian garrisons from key islands and coastal sites, consolidating Athens' maritime influence without immediate large-scale confrontations.

Major Military Campaigns

Establishment in the Delian League

Cimon solidified his position within the Delian League through repeated elections as strategos beginning in the late 470s BC, capitalizing on prior victories like the conquest of Skyros around 476 BC, where he expelled Dolopian pirates and secured the island for Athenian influence.^[3] These successes enabled him to lead League fleets in consolidating Athenian hegemony over Aegean allies, focusing on logistical enhancements such as accepting monetary tributes in lieu of manned ships from reluctant members, thereby augmenting Athens' naval strength without diluting command authority.^[3] This policy, initiated under Cimon's command, shifted the League's structure toward Athenian financial dominance, as allies increasingly contributed funds rather than personnel.^[3] In suppressing early revolts, such as that of Naxos circa 470 BC—the first recorded secession attempt—Cimon deployed League forces to besiege the island, compelling its surrender and reduction to tributary status without destroying the city, thereby deterring further defiance while preserving economic utility.^[9] Similar actions against Carystus in Euboea enforced compliance, expanding the League's reach and establishing precedents for Athenian intervention against internal challenges, distinct from direct Persian confrontations.^[10] These operations emphasized strategic buildup, including fleet maintenance and island fortifications, over decisive battles. Cimon's approach to spoils from these campaigns further entrenched his popularity, as he directed revenues toward public benefactions in Athens, such as adorning the city with elegant structures and opening his estates for communal use, contrasting with predecessors who hoarded wealth and thereby cultivating loyalty among citizens and allies alike.^[3] This practice not only funded infrastructural improvements but also reinforced his image as a leader prioritizing collective prosperity, sustaining his electoral success and the League's operational cohesion.^[3]

Battle of the Eurymedon

In 466 BC, Cimon commanded a Delian League fleet of approximately 200 triremes against Persian forces stationed at the mouth of the Eurymedon River in Pamphylia, southern Asia Minor.^[3] The Persian navy, under Ariomandes, had anchored upriver to await reinforcements of 80 Phoenician vessels, totaling around 240–340 ships overall.^[3] Cimon initiated a bold assault, ramming and boarding the Persian ships as they attempted to maneuver, achieving a decisive naval victory through superior tactics and close-quarters combat.^[3] ^[11] Following the sea battle, Cimon's marines transferred to captured Persian vessels and donned enemy clothing to feign the arrival of reinforcements, tricking the Persian land army—estimated in the tens of thousands—into dispersing in panic.^[3] This ruse enabled the Greeks to land and slaughter the disorganized infantry, resulting in a rare double victory on water and land in a single day.^[3] ^[12] The engagement destroyed or captured over 200 Persian ships, with the remainder burned or scuttled, while the army suffered near-total annihilation.^[3] This outcome crippled Persian naval resurgence in the eastern Mediterranean, as evidenced by the absence of major fleet actions thereafter until the 450s BC, and secured Greek coastal cities from immediate threats.^[11] ^[12] The spoils, including intact captured triremes, bolstered the Delian League's fleet strength and funded Athenian initiatives, while Cimon's triumph—likened by contemporaries to surpassing Salamis—elevated his status as a premier strategist and unified league allies under Athenian leadership.^[3] Ancient accounts, primarily from Plutarch drawing on earlier historians like Ephorus, emphasize the battle's decisiveness, though exact numbers reflect potential exaggeration typical of victory narratives; Thucydides corroborates the dual triumph without quantifying losses.^[3] ^[11] Following his victory at the Eurymedon around 466 BC, Cimon redirected Athenian naval efforts to the northern Aegean, targeting the Thracian Chersonesus to expel lingering Persian garrisons and secure vital grain supply routes from the Black Sea via the Hellespont.^[3] He subdued hostile Thracian tribes, including measures against piracy by groups such as the Sciri and Dolonci, thereby restoring Athenian control over the peninsula, which his father Miltiades had previously governed as a tyrant.^[3] This campaign addressed persistent threats from Persian-aligned forces and local unrest that endangered Delian League commerce and territorial integrity. Plutarch records that Cimon established nine new cities across the Chersonesus, repopulating and fortifying the area to create a buffer against Thracian incursions and potential Persian resurgence, while providing land allotments for Athenian settlers.^[3] These foundations enhanced strategic dominance in the region, linking it more firmly to Athens' expanding influence and countering rival claims to Thracian resources.^[13] The recolonization efforts intersected with escalating tensions over Thracian mining interests, precipitating the revolt of Thasos against the Delian League in 465 BC. Thasos, reliant on gold and silver mines in the adjacent mainland, contested Athenian demands for exclusive control of these assets and related trade monopolies, prompting the islanders to renounce their alliance obligations.^[14] Cimon commanded the Athenian counteroffensive, routing the Thasian fleet in open battle before imposing a blockade and siege on the island itself.^[13] The siege endured approximately three years until Thasos capitulated in 463 BC, yielding severe terms: demolition of fortifications, forfeiture of their navy (around 33 triremes), payment of a 300-talent indemnity to Athens, and abandonment of all Thracian coastal holdings, which Athens promptly seized to bolster its northern perimeter.^[14] These concessions transferred valuable mining revenues to the League treasury, funding further Athenian operations while weakening potential rebel footholds.^[13] Contemporary critics, including Thasian sources preserved in later accounts, alleged that Cimon exhibited leniency during negotiations, purportedly accepting bribes from island envoys to avoid razing the city outright, a charge that highlighted early frictions over his conduct in League enforcement.^[3] Such claims, rooted in Thasian resentment over lost autonomy and assets, underscored vulnerabilities in Cimon's aggressive expansionism amid rivalries within Athens' political sphere.

Political Conflicts

Trial for Bribery

Following the suppression of the Thasian revolt in 463 BC, Cimon faced prosecution during his euthyna—the mandatory audit of a general's conduct upon returning from command—initiated by the rising democratic leader Pericles.^[15] The primary allegation was that Cimon had accepted bribes from Alexander I of Macedon to forgo an invasion of Macedonian territory, despite a strategic opportunity arising when Thasos appealed to Alexander for aid during the siege.^[1] According to Plutarch, this chance emerged amid the Thasian blockade, where Cimon's fleet could have exploited Macedonian vulnerability, but he prioritized concluding operations against Thasos instead, prompting suspicions of corruption.^[13] Cimon's defense emphasized his unyielding opposition to barbarians, invoking his father Miltiades' victory at Marathon as proof of philhellenic integrity, while dismissing any affinity for Macedonian overtures.^[16] Plutarch recounts that his sister Elpinice publicly upbraided Pericles for targeting her brother over what she deemed a minor omission compared to Pericles' own alleged leniency toward Spartan interests.^[13] The trial, conducted before a popular jury via hand-raising vote, resulted in acquittal, underscoring the polarized Athenian elite: propertied conservatives rallied behind Cimon's established military successes, while populist factions, led by Pericles, leveraged bribery charges—a common tool in intra-aristocratic rivalries—to erode his influence without substantive evidence of guilt emerging.^[17] This outcome preserved Cimon's public standing temporarily, affirming reliance on his record of Delian League victories over unproven accusations, though ancient accounts like Aristotle's Athenaion Politeia and Plutarch's biography reflect pro-oligarchic leanings that may downplay procedural motivations in such audits.^[15] The narrow political divide evident in the verdict highlighted deepening fissures between pro-Spartan traditionalists and emerging democrats, with bribery claims serving more as vehicles for factional contestation than verifiable malfeasance, absent corroborating material proof in surviving records.^[18]

Intervention in the Spartan Helot Revolt

In 464 BC, a catastrophic earthquake struck Sparta, destroying much of the city and killing up to 20,000 inhabitants according to later estimates derived from ancient accounts, which precipitated the Third Messenian War—a widespread helot uprising that threatened the Spartan state's survival.^[3] The Spartans appealed to their Peloponnesian allies for military support, including Athens, whose democratic system and imperial ambitions already strained relations with the oligarchic Spartans.^[19] Despite vocal opposition in the Athenian assembly, which viewed aiding a rival power as folly amid ongoing tensions over regional hegemony, Cimon championed intervention, arguing that Sparta's collapse would destabilize the Greek world and undermine collective defenses against Persia.^[3] He persuaded the Athenians to dispatch 4,000 hoplites under his command, a force that arrived promptly and integrated into Spartan operations to combat the rebels, including early clashes before the helots entrenched themselves at Mount Ithome.^[3] This aid reflected Cimon's philolaconian priorities, favoring pragmatic interstate solidarity over immediate Athenian gains, though it exposed divisions between his conservative faction and emerging democratic radicals.^[13] The expedition achieved tactical successes in bolstering Spartan lines and preventing immediate helot dominance, contributing to the revolt's containment despite its prolongation into a siege at Ithome lasting until circa 462 BC.^[3] However, the Spartans soon dismissed the Athenians—retaining other allies longer—citing suspicions that Athens' egalitarian ethos might incite sympathy among the helots through shared rituals and interactions, a move that humiliated Cimon and intensified assembly debates.^[3] Ephialtes, a leading opponent, lambasted the action as subordinating Athenian sovereignty to Spartan interests, framing it as evidence of Cimon's undue favoritism toward oligarchy over popular will, though the intervention empirically preserved Spartan resilience and averted a broader Peloponnesian power vacuum.^[13]

Ostracism and Exile

In 461 BC, following the assassination of Ephialtes and the implementation of his reforms stripping the Areopagus of its supervisory and judicial powers over magistrates, Cimon faced ostracism as democratic factions consolidated influence. These reforms shifted authority toward popular assemblies and courts, which Cimon opposed as undermining the mixed constitution that balanced aristocratic oversight with democratic elements, positioning him as a defender of traditional institutions amid rising radicalism. Rivals, including Pericles, leveraged Cimon's pro-Spartan policies—exemplified by his recent aid to Sparta during the helot revolt, which ended in Athenian dismissal—to portray him as an oligarchic sympathizer threatening egalitarian progress. Plutarch attributes the vote to hostility against "Laconizers" like Cimon, enacted on a "trifling pretext" after his forces returned humiliated from the Peloponnese.^[3] The ostracism procedure required at least 6,000 valid ostraka (inscribed pottery shards) naming potential exiles, with the highest vote recipient banished to prevent perceived threats to the state; in Cimon's case, it reflected elite factional polarization rather than unanimous popular will, as his military record had previously commanded broad support. The outcome imposed the standard ten-year term of exile, during which participation in Athenian politics or property management was forbidden, though no confiscation occurred. This banishment highlighted the rift between proponents of expansive democracy and advocates of restrained governance allied with Sparta, with Cimon's ostracism enabling Pericles' ascendancy without evidence of procedural irregularity beyond partisan maneuvering.^[3]^[13] During exile, Cimon resided outside Attica, with some accounts placing him in Argos, where he may have aligned with anti-democratic elements amid regional tensions, though primary sources like Plutarch provide no explicit location, emphasizing instead his withdrawal from direct Athenian involvement. This period underscored the causal link between policy divergences—particularly over alliances and constitutional balance—and the use of ostracism as a tool for neutralizing conservative leaders, without resolving underlying interstate frictions.^[3]

Return and Final Years

Recall to Athens

Cimon, ostracized in 461 BC for his pro-Spartan policies, faced initial resistance to his return during the First Peloponnesian War. In 457 BC, as Athenian forces confronted Spartan invaders at Tanagra, he sought to join the campaign but was barred by the Council of Five Hundred, who deemed his participation a potential risk due to lingering suspicions of Laconian sympathies.^[20] The turning point came after Athens's costly victory at Tanagra, which heightened fears of renewed Peloponnesian incursions and strained Athenian resources amid ongoing conflicts. Approximately in 451 BC, with the city vulnerable to further Spartan aggression, the Athenian assembly passed a decree recalling Cimon from his ten-year exile ahead of schedule. Notably, Pericles, his longtime rival and a leader of the democratic faction, sponsored the measure, reflecting pragmatic recognition of Cimon's diplomatic value in de-escalating tensions with Sparta.^[21] Upon reinstatement, Cimon leveraged his established rapport with Sparta to broker a five-year truce, often termed the Peace of Cimon, which temporarily halted hostilities and allowed Athens to redirect efforts toward eastern campaigns against Persia. This reconciliation extended to other rivals, stabilizing Athens's position and underscoring Cimon's role as a bridge between competing Greek powers despite his conservative leanings.^[22]

Reconstruction Efforts

Upon his recall from exile in 451 BCE, Cimon prioritized the practical fortification of Athens, overseeing the reinforcement of city walls damaged during the Persian sack of 480–479 BCE and the initiation of defensive expansions using Delian League tribute.^[1] These efforts included stabilizing the foundations of the Long Walls, which connected Athens to its ports at Piraeus and Phaleron, thereby enhancing resilience against land sieges by linking the city securely to its naval assets.^[23] Cimon ensured the efficient deployment of league resources derived from earlier victories, such as those at Eurymedon in 466 BCE, directing funds toward verifiable defensive gains rather than speculative ventures.^[24] Complementing state funds, Cimon personally financed infrastructural improvements from his substantial private fortune amassed through military command, including the restoration of the Acropolis's southern wall and enhancements to public amenities like tree plantings in the agora for shade and the addition of a water supply to the Academy gymnasium.^[25] These initiatives emphasized utility and long-term civic functionality—such as bolstering urban greenery and water access—over grandiose displays, reflecting a conservative approach to public expenditure that favored stability and self-reliance amid league membership pressures.^[1] In contrast to subsequent leaders' temple-focused outlays, Cimon's contributions underscored restrained investment in core infrastructure to sustain Athenian hegemony without undue fiscal strain on allies.^[26]

Death during the Cypriot Expedition

In circa 450 BC, Cimon commanded a fleet of 200 triremes against Persian positions in Cyprus, aiming to exploit local revolts and weaken Achaemenid naval power in the eastern Mediterranean.^[3] The expedition secured early tactical advantages, including victories over Phoenician and Cilician squadrons encountered at sea and the submission or capture of several Cypriot cities.^[3] The fleet then invested Citium, a heavily fortified coastal stronghold held by Persian and Phoenician forces, initiating a prolonged siege.^[3] During operations at Citium, Cimon perished, with the majority of ancient sources attributing his death to disease contracted amid the campaign's hardships.^[3] A minority account claims he succumbed to wounds inflicted while leading assaults on the city.^[3] Diodorus Siculus corroborates the illness narrative, noting Cimon's death occurred during his time on the island. The precise timing remains debated, with dates proposed between 451 and 449 BC derived from chronological reconstructions of Plutarch and Diodorus.^[3] These operations underscored Athenian naval projection capabilities, yielding localized control over key harbors and disrupting Persian maritime logistics, though the unfinished siege at Citium highlighted logistical constraints in sustaining extended blockades against resolute garrisons.^[3]

Ideology and Legacy

Conservative Politics and Philolaconism

Cimon's conservative ideology centered on limiting the scope of Athenian democracy to prevent the volatility associated with excessive popular sovereignty, advocating instead for the retention of traditional aristocratic checks. He supported the Areopagus council's extensive powers, including its oversight of magistrates, guardianship of the laws, and jurisdiction over moral and political offenses, as essential stabilizers inherited from Solon's reforms.^[19] In opposition to Ephialtes' initiatives around 462 BC, which transferred many of these functions to bodies more accountable to the popular assembly—such as trials for misconduct in office—Cimon argued that diluting the Areopagus risked undermining constitutional balance and inviting demagogic instability, a view aligned with his family's eupatrid heritage and broader aristocratic preferences for moderated participation. ^[19] This restraint reflected a preference for hierarchical governance over egalitarian expansion, prioritizing empirical stability over ideological commitments to broader enfranchisement; Cimon reportedly emphasized that the Areopagus's elite composition ensured deliberate judgment, contrasting with the assembly's susceptibility to fleeting passions. His philolaconism complemented this framework, manifesting as a strategic affinity for Sparta's oligarchic discipline and land-based military prowess, which he deemed indispensable for pan-Hellenic defense against Persia following victories like Eurymedon in 466 BC.^[3] Rather than isolationism, which empirical outcomes suggested would fragment Greek resources—evident in later Peloponnesian divisions—Cimon's policy favored alliances grounded in shared anti-tyrannical values and mutual oligarchic leanings, viewing Sparta's austere ethos as a counterweight to Athenian naval adventurism without necessitating democratic alignment.^[27] ^[28] Such positions, while pragmatic for unified resistance to external threats, drew accusations of undue Spartan deference, contributing to perceptions of philolaconism as a liability in an increasingly democratic Athens.^[3] Nonetheless, Cimon's approach underscored causal realism in interstate relations, where ideological purity yielded to verifiable complementarities in power projection, as Sparta's 8,000-strong citizen hoplites bolstered Athens' fleet-dependent strategy without internal upheaval.^[27] This aristocratic internationalism distinguished his conservatism from parochial isolation, though it clashed with emerging imperial ambitions that favored Athenian hegemony over balanced partnerships.^[28]

Rivalry with Democratic Leaders

Cimon's political opposition to the democratic reforms initiated by Ephialtes crystallized in 462 BC, when Ephialtes successfully stripped the Areopagus council—traditionally an aristocratic body with judicial and oversight powers—of most of its political functions, transferring authority to the popular assembly and courts.^[29] Cimon viewed these changes as an assault on the mixed constitution favored by earlier reformers like Solon, arguing they eroded checks against mob rule and presaged unchecked imperial ambitions that could destabilize Athens' alliances.^[13] Ephialtes and his allies, conversely, portrayed Cimon as an oligarchic reactionary whose pro-Spartan leanings and defense of elite institutions obstructed the empowerment of the demos, essential for Athens' maritime empire.^[1] This factional divide intensified Cimon's rivalry with Pericles, Ephialtes' successor after the latter's assassination in 461 BC. In 463 BC, Pericles prosecuted Cimon on charges of bribery for allegedly accepting Macedonian gold to overlook Alexander I's Persian sympathies during earlier campaigns, a trial Cimon narrowly survived through acquittal by a slim margin of 45 votes.^[30] Pro-democratic sources framed the charges as accountability for elite corruption, while Cimon's defenders countered that they exemplified populist tactics to eliminate balanced governance opponents, preserving a constitution blending aristocratic wisdom with popular input against demagogic excess. The ostracism of Cimon in 461 BC, following Athenian troops' humiliating dismissal by Sparta during the helot revolt aid effort, marked the nadir of this rivalry, with Pericles leveraging public disillusionment to secure a decade's exile.^[1] Democrats hailed the vote as safeguarding Athens from pro-Laconian obstructionism that risked subordinating the city to Spartan hegemony, yet conservative assessments later attributed subsequent democratic radicalism—evident in the Peloponnesian War's factional strife—to the Areopagus weakening, validating Cimon's warnings of causal instability from unbridled popular sovereignty.^[19]

Historical Evaluations of Achievements and Criticisms

Plutarch, drawing on earlier sources, praised Cimon's military campaigns against Persia, particularly the victories at Eurymedon in 466 BCE and the subsequent raids, as instrumental in expelling Persian forces from the Aegean and consolidating Athenian leadership in the Delian League, which grew to encompass over 150 member states by the mid-460s BCE.^[3] He highlighted Cimon's diplomatic acumen in managing alliances, portraying him as the preeminent Hellenic statesman capable of conciliating both allies and Spartans, and noted his personal philanthropy—such as funding public banquets and rebuilding temples from private resources—which fostered social cohesion in Athens amid post-war recovery.^[3] Thucydides, while more restrained, acknowledged Cimon's ostracism in 461 BCE stemmed from his pro-Spartan stance but credited his recall in 451 BCE with enabling a five-year truce between Athens and Sparta, implying a pragmatic contribution to averting immediate interstate conflict.^[19] Contemporary Athenian critics, aligned with Ephialtes and Pericles, condemned Cimon's philolaconism as a betrayal of democratic expansionism, accusing him of prioritizing Spartan hegemony over Athenian imperial growth; this narrative framed his support for Spartan appeals during the helot revolt of 464 BCE as evidence of divided loyalties, leading to his political marginalization.^[31] Plutarch records these charges but counters that Cimon's policies reflected aristocratic restraint rather than subservience, evidenced by Sparta's reciprocal esteem and the absence of Athenian subjugation under his influence.^[3] Modern scholarship offers a balanced reassessment, with some historians critiquing Cimon's panhellenic ambitions as inadequately realized, resulting in a "lame hegemony" that failed to forge lasting Greek unity against Persia due to overreliance on naval coercion in Asia Minor.^[32] Others emphasize empirical contrasts: under Cimon, the Delian League expanded through targeted Persian campaigns and voluntary tributes, amassing reserves estimated at 500-600 talents annually by 450 BCE without provoking widespread revolt, whereas Pericles' relocation of the treasury to Athens in 454 BCE and coercive assessments intensified allied resentments, contributing causally to the Peloponnesian War's outbreak in 431 BCE as Thucydides attributed to unchecked Athenian aggrandizement.^[19] This view underscores Cimon's conservative prudence in restraining imperial overreach, potentially delaying Athens' exhaustion by two decades compared to the democratic faction's riskier confrontations with Sparta.^[33]

References

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Do not suffer Greece to be maimed and Athens to lose her companion." So Athenian soldiers went in command of Cimon and fought for the Spartans. But the Helots ...Missing: asylum | Show results with:asylum
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the evolution of the meaning of philolaconism in Athens
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Thus, many oligarchs were unquestionably pro-Spartan, but this still does not necessarily mean that all philolaconists had to be a priori ada- mant oligarchs.
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[30]
Cimon | Athenian Statesman & General of the Greco-Persian Wars
Oct 18, 2025 · In 478 he helped the Athenian statesman and general Aristides to secure the transference from Sparta to Athens of the leadership of the Greek ...Missing: achievements primary
[31]
The case of Cimon: the evolution of the meaning of philolaconism in ...
The tradition depicts Cimon as a philo-Spartan aristocrat, associating this trait to a series of anecdotes and, ultimately, to his political demise.
[32]
(PDF) The Lame Hegemony. Cimon of Athens and the Failure of ...
This study emphasizes the need for source criticism in understanding 5th-century BC Greek history. Cimon's role as a politician and general is central to the ...Missing: evaluations | Show results with:evaluations
[33]
https://www.historyskills.com/classroom/ancient-history/cimon/